Bert Krak is the King of NYC Style Tattoos | Tattoo Age Episode 4

well you want me to show you first you want me to show you this thing right here right this is the exact setup for a tattooer in 1955 Coney Island Brooklyn this machine right here is good to go I kept doing this right now people talk about a traditional tattoo you should be able to see it from across the street and know what it is and I can't think of a more perfect example of that than a bird crack tattoo the thing would put crack of what he's got going there now people are realizing the importance of that imagery it's Americans where they came from there's not many people that think about tattooing as much as bird he was definitely thrown his life at it this is as rare as it gets just blows my mind that I even have this stuff you know it's family obviously first and foremost but tattooing is right up there he's a bigger-than-life character you know you know you don't have to watch me shave you that just makes it weird yeah I mean it'd be hard not to want to get that D by Bert crack if you want what I have to offer well then let's do it [Music] I think not every cookie I have in my body immediate my decision right but I want some that's good time very focused on traditional tattooing only does it look the best but it ages the best this looks the toughest you know there's certain designs I fight attitude 50-100 times I don't care I'll keep tattooing them from now until I don't do this anymore you know you'll notice it your recognises is being burped crack it's gonna have a pretty good solid big fat black outline nice black shading you know just the right amount of color I think it's at first glance looks like an instant reaction that it looks great regardless of the subject matter but just the composition of them the line weights like everything is so on point well done Marco what do you think it's nice and big - it fills the whole spot the sheer graphicness and power of his tattoos I think it matches his personality it's very direct pretty exciting so we're doing one tonight and then in a couple of days you're getting this one okay well maybe just a little smaller on this one and then decide this one's good size I always try to steer people into into a design that I think's gonna look good as a tattoo and that way we could both be happy I mean I would just leave it the way it is really cuz making it dead in what way like putting X's like what X's on his eyes you don't mean like that's you're right you're right you know so unless between today and Saturday you find a good reference of a sheet that looks dead and still gonna make a good tattoo I'll draw it off of that you know I mean my first point yeah don't tell him what you warn your friends oh he's gonna be an that's not what she really messing actually what she means usually the conversation goes I want to get tattooed okay either they have an idea or ask him and then he's going to shut you down if it's a bad idea he's going to tell you exactly what he doesn't like it's never gonna just be like okay whatever you want [Music] we think not so bad right no look you're gonna get used to it here I'm gonna say this regulate your breathing just relax and breathe more well relax your feet relax your toes why should fingertips I you'll see though in a few minutes in the a lines done he told me you've said [Music] traditional tattooing is always gone you know absent flows what bird figured out is that the simpler designs that was the real good stuff he was the first guy to say this is what we're selling and this is the premium tattoo because this is the best that there is I feel like in Bert's case there's a level of craft and care and tradition I think he wants to continue that tradition but I think he wants to add a page to that history here I have something pretty interesting I can show you guys just some sheets of flash like painted painted painted this is a reference for for Burt juniors first two tattoos my oldest son he just asked me for mom and dad tattoos first first once and and uh you know this is just kind of what I what I put together for him maybe one of the things about working in in a style and being known for that is that you have to kind of innovate that something has to always be developed to keep it new and fresh and he's never really struggled to do that I had like a bunch of people talking to me about getting back pieces so I had this idea like I'm gonna paint every back piece I get asked to do so I started doing that and that I realized this is like a lot of work but I did end up getting to paint a few of these back pieces this is Nathaniel map um this is NAT boys back piece well he's been knocking all these really cool back pieces out it's amazing all the back pieces that came in down there have been hitches back to Rock of Ages the clouds say Rock of Ages and it just like who would think of that and then be confident enough to pull that off this one I finished this one and he's got a back piece of a Jaguar and a gorilla fighting on top of a pile of skulls it's one of the strongest tattoos you've ever seen it's so mean looking it's great but they look they could be best buds though you know I think now just really focusing on finding designs I haven't done before that haven't been overdone by all these other people that are doing the same style I was always looking for like a design that that that you haven't seen yet [Music] there you guys know on Thursday night max is having like a book opening party right are you going yeah Telstar oh I think the cover of the book says what color are the lights on the Empire State Building tonight which is hey it's a great question my favorite one though is though it's the when they do the rainbow when it's like Pride Week and they do the rainbow Empire State boy that looks sick I remember as a kid I just always thought like New York is so cool I just felt like this this is the capital of the world they have a look in the mirror first time I came to New York City touching convention the first one I did I met Steve you know when you meet part he's real nice you know he's got a way about him so we hit it off pretty quick but I think Burt also had a pretty good focus on what he wanted overall what he thought looked good about tattoos and how he wanted him to look even when I was in Florida I was looking at that New York book and not feeling like this this is this is this is the good stuff you know this book deals with the history of New York City tattoo it what I like about the New York style of tattooing is that I like how bold it is I like kind of reads really simply and and looks super strong you know I've read this book multiple times I've asked my son to read this book this is the book that really fires you up to be a part of this New York thing me and Eli and bolts have talked about how when we were younger we would read this book and feel like cool you know we're gonna be a part of this we would talk about like maybe we should you know open a tattoo shop in Brooklyn in Carroll Gardens this was where Steve live you know in the very beginning it was right off the bat me Steve Eli Dan started the next year we do were to talk about what style the shop was gonna be because we were doing traditional stuff but maybe in the first year of being here or second year being here we would always talk about 20 Pulido I learned about Tony from the New York City book that was like our Bible and there's those two sheets in the back of the book that we've always thought was like kind of the coolest sheet to flash ever this is from Tony's first baseman shop these sheets I traced every one of these designs I painted every one of these you know I would use these sheets they just have such a different look he was a regional folk hero in New York City maybe New Jersey people knew him here well you even a worldwide figure I think it's hurt they don't love and admiration for him was really what made him a world wide tattoo legend you know he knew there's only maybe like three miles four or five miles away and then just one day we just went there we went we met Tony I asked him if he had the old flash he went in the basement and brought two originals upstairs and he gave me them and when we left we're just like wow as soon as I got them I thought wow I just got two of the best sheets ever painted did Tony or there anybody you know from that era even think for one second that any of these sheets were gonna be like collected one day you know it was a tool for them to you know this is like this is our product you know you pick the product I give it to you you know what I mean I think when we got the Polito stuff so we were like alright this is this is really what we should be doing like that's when the really the ball kind of like started really rolling you know and I mean and and things I think started really like evolving we put the flash up and they they would get it you know you always knew you if you went to Tony's you're getting a very classic Brooklyn style tattoo and I like few would have been think of our shop the same way you see what Burt crack has at Smith Street tattoo is a team and they're all doing basically the same style they do it real good people just kind of know what to expect coming through that door and that's a bold stripped-down simple strong New York style budget you know I idolized it I was watching what they were doing and so to get to be a part of it yeah if ever since I you know knew that traditional was for me and this place existed I wanted to to see it and to be here it's a special thing they have you don't find that everywhere it's more than just a co-worker situation it's a it's another family for him it really is today something good they get along they go out they have fun my kids call them all uncles they call them their tattoo uncles actually yeah we built we built this place I get so much enjoyment out you know this is like my Clubhouse should I tell them to go downstairs and watch a movie okay whatever Hachi you guys want to see some of these pictures this is a pretty old photo of me and Tyra I like right around when we first started dating right yeah I mean when I met him he was already out of school he was already working full-time he was like 17 18 when I first met him well this one says 95 before Bert jr. tire might even be pregnant this photo almost exactly but dated so Bert jr. was less than a month old in this photo look not a tattoo on us so much you started buying tattoo magazines I would go get these magazines and I would just like I'd read it front to back and I'd stare at them and I just a thing in my head said I'm gonna do this I mean his mother begged me begged me to make him get a real job I believe was the term time and I just saw there yeah he's a man he wants to do it he's gonna do it tire salt pork to my tattoo him because you know like even when I didn't know if I could do it she was like you you can do this I had Tara and Birju here before I had tattoos you know so like anything I've learned in tattooing she she watched me learn it I think you were tattooing ten year before you went even pet to me because he's like I got a look at it every day yeah but I make house calls for you I've had a couple house close letters correct and I've had shops opened when they're closed just for me to do anything he's built a whole a whole life from from nothing which were you doing pretty well science they're real super dedicated family man he's about that family life he's very proud to be a dad very proud to be a husband they adore him he's really really a good dad you know he's really loving and it it just shows in everything that he does mm-hmm I do I mean it's it's awesome it's interesting to look at it's old stuff you don't see you know the bird pretty much does the decorating here I my my thing is just when it's too over-the-top no ha ha this is a sheet from old Calcutta I got this from Tony like probably in the first maybe year that I met him this is the Ed Smith sheet this is the old Bowery tattooer I'm pretty sure he was broken by Charlie Wagner this one's Paul Rodgers it's got all the all the history kind of like written on there this is Ralph Johnson this is an unknown as well as this one here his love for this it goes so deep it's not about tattooing everyday got this from Edie on my first studio visit there at Hardy and then this sheet here is from cap Coleman he soaks up the knowledge of years gone by the you know hid the history of tattooing just a Charlie Wagner sign we've been told forever that all Wagner stuff you know ended up in the garbage like he'd you know when they closed his shop he left or he passed away or whatever landlord goes in takes all the stuff throws it in the garbage um I think Charlie Wagner is pretty much the most influential Bowery tattooer of his time all might like collector buddies they can't believe that I but I have it that it exists he doesn't get something cool and then hide it from anybody these are Bob wicks these are the best he's not gonna post it on Instagram or on the internet and show everybody what he has but if you come by he's gonna be like check this out 19:33 these were found in an attic I think in Boston I think you into today he's respected as like probably the greatest artist or flash artist in tattooing look at the detail on that that's insane I think this is my the best piece of flash that I that I own by far every Sagada so I've been googling Charlie Wagner looking for these designs in the pictures the sign that every photo seems to have different stuff in it so it's kind of like I haven't found any of these many photos yet kind of like get it collect earrings like insanity sometimes but the lillian's tell me so hey you know you can't have it all and just be happy for the stuff that does fall in my lap and I've been pretty fortunate a lot of cool things have fall you know come my way come up here get up here can't leave like that where's Mike you're gonna give me kiss later bud like perfetto is actually the operator of the longest-running tattoo shop in New York City yeah haven't been there in a long time it's a pretty cool shop he probably has one of the best neons you've ever seen in a tattoo shop [Music] the Photoshop so classic how you do it you know Mike's been tattooing in the same location since before I was born I pretty much have told everybody that ever asks me about where should I get tattooed in New York what where else should I go see I always say you know you should you should go see you like this place it looks it looks good down here it looks a little different cuz you took out you took down all the you put all Jerry stuff up yeah a lot of hand paint this stuff I took down I put up Jerry stuff trying to try to bring that back our people picking this stuff yes they are actually they are and I think it's thanks to you I think you put a new face on a new person and I'm not just saying that cuz we're here together and you're twice my size I tell all of my friends I said man burnt really you know put a new face on that and that's what he does and that's where you stick so I admire these guys that that kept and brought back that old style look because that is what emulates the whole tattoo world you know it really does that that's what says tattoo would you mind showing us some of your older stuff like you have any did he sheets or anything like that you could show a little iPhone the old like a very simple design to get tattooed I mean I know you - appointments coming soon but it might take 10 minutes absolutely sure are these newer these older that was older these are amazing Mike no let me put it to you this way Monica I went out with when I was 31 I love these those two Christ's sheets are amazing I want to take one take one get out of here yeah take whatever one you HOT serious I'm gonna take this one all right thank you so much welcome to be able to like him now be friends with Mike and spend time with them and get tattooed by them it's it's like it's kind of kind of an honor to be able to even tattoo in the same borough as him I always said I think that Burt's shop is the most well tuned working machine in the tattoo world I always said that was the most perfect working machine honest truth that's the God's honest truth I've always said that you're setting the bar there's absolutely no doubt that Burt here has made as mocking this fact for work Thanks that's the Gaza understood I always say that I was thinking about you should get design your iced tea my putting it pretty much right here at this point you gotta be real selective oh cool Thanks I think that fits pretty good yeah excellent that Hardy did this one cool all right ready oh yeah all right I want to carry the torch of New York City tattooing these guys have put in a lot of work to achieve this style and to be considered by the best shops in New York I like to think of our shop the same way you know we these are the guys we're looking up to these are the guys who were trying to emulate we're trying to put in you know the same hard work that they did to keep this style going [Music] you

Channel: VICE

Views: 360,964

Keywords: New York, japanese, BROOKLYN, art, arts & culture, Tattoo, body modification, history, Ink, Traditional, Bert Krak, traditional american, skin art, Smith Street Tattoo Parlour, Tony Polito, Mike Perfetto, vice, journalism, documentary, videos, culture, interview, underground, vice videos, lifestyle, independent, vice guide, exclusive, vice mag, vice magazine, vice.com, world, documentaries, docs, APCLPWCL124153118, vice magazine krokodil, skin art tattoo designs, skin art tattoo, skin artist

Id: 6WBQi3R3NDU

Length: 22min 35sec (1355 seconds)

Published: Sat Sep 12 2020